Articles

One of the greatest frustrations of getting together with a group of friends for a meal is picking a place to eat. Consensus is hard to reach when the members of the group each crave something different.

The Central Columbia Association is offering a temporary solution. On Thursday night, the organization is putting on its third annual “Dinner in the District,” where food enthusiasts will be able to sample menus from 16 of the 70 restaurants and bars in downtown Columbia.

Phyllis Ward came to the Missouri Theatre Monday night with a Popsicle to help fend off the sweltering heat. She had one goal in mind when she arrived two hours early for the screening of “Killer Diller.” Ward wanted to see herself on the big screen.

“When we were filming, the director said she was impressed with the way I rolled my eyes,” Ward said as she waited outside for the doors to open. “So I’m really excited; my sons and I are definitely hoping to catch a glimpse.”

Two initiatives to reduce punishments for misdemeanor marijuana possession took another step toward becoming law last week while a third initiative dealing with the purchase of “green” energy took a step back.

The two marijuana initiatives were certified by City Clerk Sheela Amin, but the energy initiative was 138 signatures short. However, it still has a chance to go before the Columbia City Council. Amin said petitioners had 10 days from the time they were informed of the shortage to collect the needed amount of signatures. The deadline is Sunday.

A Hispanic caller phoned 911 to report a fire at an apartment complex on Thursday, but what emergency personnel on the other end heard were strings of confusing, broken English. They knew the location of the caller but could not determine whether he had a police or fire emergency. Both departments were sent to the scene, said Donna Hargis, operations coordinator for joint communications.

When firefighters arrived they saw heavy smoke coming from the front window of the four-plex. However, they were able to determine that everyone in the building had escaped. Conversation with the occupants of the four-plex proved to be difficult, Battalion Chief Steven Sapp said.

A heavy rainstorm in March caused extensive damage to the $50,000 gate erected at an entrance to Boone Cave to protect two endangered species of bats.

“It was one of those good old heavy Missouri rains,” said Tim James, a Missouri Department of Conservation biologist. “The damage was caused by a combination of the way the water and the debris were coming through the slots in the gate.”

JEFFERSON CITY— Former Sen. Jean Carnahan is now appearing in a television ad supporting Gov. Bob Holden, lending one of the most venerated names in state Democratic politics to his re-election effort.

Carnahan invokes the legacy of her late husband, Gov. Mel Carnahan, while declaring in the TV ad that Republican state lawmakers have tried to “dismantle the important gains for children and families” that her husband supported.

An 83-year-old woman was sentenced Monday to five years’ supervised probation for fatally shooting her husband of 53 years in November.

Marjorie Leslie appeared in court for sentencing after pleading guilty in May to voluntary manslaughter. Phil Leslie, Marjorie’s son, took the stand to testify on his mother’s behalf, saying it was the “sincere belief and hope of my entire family” that his mother should be granted probation. He said his father would have wanted probation for his mother.

After not picking up a club for about nine months, Leslie Fischer started playing again at the start of the summer. In a tournament last year, Fischer, 16, dug her club into the ground and jammed her rotator cuff.

Injuries haunted Fischer, a Rock Bridge golfer, again Monday in the first round of the Missouri Big I Youth Championship at A. L. Gustin Golf Course. On the back nine, Fischer fell while walking on the fairway and hurt her knee.

JEFFERSON CITY — Missouri’s efforts at informing veterans about their benefits have improved, but more work must be done to reach new veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Gov. Bob Holden told a task force working on the issue Monday.

Holden also urged the group to focus on getting benefits to urban and minority veterans. The state budget includes $50,000 more for outreach this year, including a new position of minority veterans benefits coordinator, he said.

The Boone County Community Services Advisory Commission will hold a public hearing today on its preliminary recommendations for how the Columbia City Council should distribute its money for social services.

The commission has recommended $843,350 be distributed to local agencies during fiscal 2005. The recommendation reflects a $21,550 increase over fiscal 2004.

Columbia police are looking for two men who they say robbed the Midwest Petroleum Store, 111 Hitt St., at 12:20 p.m. Monday, according to a release.

The two men came into the store, showed their handguns and demanded money and other items, the release said. Employees gave them “an undisclosed amount of money,” and the two men were last seen running west from the market, police said.